TAYLOR - As they walked around the Taylor Memorial Cemetery, two high school seniors noticed some of the headstones had been broken.

Others were so worn they were no longer legible.

With the mindset that none of the departed should be forgotten, David Torrisi and John Segilia, both 17, created their senior project, a Memorial Garden of the Unknown. The garden, which includes pieces of the stones that can no longer be linked to individuals, was unveiled at a dedication ceremony Sunday to coincide with Veterans Day.

"We wanted it to be on a special day like this," David said, noting some of the unknown graves belonged to veterans.

"It's so people don't forget that their families are here and veterans are here," John added.

A group of residents gathered Sunday morning, where project adviser Shawn Murphy, a teacher at Riverside and David's uncle, noted that it was a perfect day. He was proud of the work the students had done to memorialize those buried in the cemetery.

"They weren't forgotten after all," he said of residents and veterans whose grave markings had faded.

"Their names might not be in a book or on a statue," borough council President Kenny Mickavicz said of the soldiers. "But they gave a sacrifice in life."

Lifelong Taylor resident Eugene Gallagher, 33, "dropped everything" he was working on in his yard when he found out about the dedication.

"I grew up on this street," he said, explaining that 15 years ago, the cemetery was all weeds.

He attributed much of the renewal to Mr. Murphy, who spearheads a group of volunteers who work to maintain the property. He said he was also pleased to see local youth taking ownership.

"You've got to know where you've been to know where you're going," he said of the significance. "It's great to see our youngsters giving back to the community."

Contact the writer: rbrown@timesshamrock.com, @rbrownTT on Twitter

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